It has been 20 years since four runaway Missouri teenagers brutally murdered Marshalltown mother Rebecca Hauser.Three of the four teenagers were sentenced to life in prison. They were back in court Thursday and may soon have a second chance at freedom.An Iowa Supreme Court decision continues to impact juvenile offenders mandatory sentences of life in prison for crimes they committed before age 18.The guilty convictions will stand, but their sentences of life in prison may not.Twin brothers Burt and Derek Smith along with friend Jayson Speaks were 15 years old when they committed the murder.Hauser, 32, was killed in a robbery attempt. The boys pretended to be police officers and pulled over her car, shot her, stabbed her more than 30 times and then beat her to death."It's possible that they could go free, but again, you're going to have to go back and look at the original facts of the case," said Bob Rigg of Drake Law Clinic.Legal experts said the new sentences will not just be based on the original crime, but also the last 20 years that have passed.Iowa's Deputy Attorney General Tom H. Miller will represent the state at the resentencing hearing."It very possibly will be a sentence other than life without parole, possibly life with immediate eligibility for parole. Whether there's any possibility for other alternatives is a legal question that you're going to find many different answers proposed by different lawyers," said Miller.Attorneys are expected to present evidence from the trial and also likely to call the family to the stand.Thursday's hearing was to decide who will represent each man.The resentencing hearing could take months or even a year to be scheduled.Marshall County Sheriff Ted Kamatchus said Hauser's murder was one of the most violent crimes he's ever investigated, and he hopes the new sentences are as strict as possible.

MARSHALLTOWN, Iowa —

It has been 20 years since four runaway Missouri teenagers brutally murdered Marshalltown mother Rebecca Hauser.

Three of the four teenagers were sentenced to life in prison. They were back in court Thursday and may soon have a second chance at freedom.

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An Iowa Supreme Court decision continues to impact juvenile offenders mandatory sentences of life in prison for crimes they committed before age 18.

The guilty convictions will stand, but their sentences of life in prison may not.

Twin brothers Burt and Derek Smith along with friend Jayson Speaks were 15 years old when they committed the murder.

Hauser, 32, was killed in a robbery attempt. The boys pretended to be police officers and pulled over her car, shot her, stabbed her more than 30 times and then beat her to death.

"It's possible that they could go free, but again, you're going to have to go back and look at the original facts of the case," said Bob Rigg of Drake Law Clinic.

Legal experts said the new sentences will not just be based on the original crime, but also the last 20 years that have passed.

Iowa's Deputy Attorney General Tom H. Miller will represent the state at the resentencing hearing.

"It very possibly will be a sentence other than life without parole, possibly life with immediate eligibility for parole. Whether there's any possibility for other alternatives is a legal question that you're going to find many different answers proposed by different lawyers," said Miller.

Attorneys are expected to present evidence from the trial and also likely to call the family to the stand.

Thursday's hearing was to decide who will represent each man.

The resentencing hearing could take months or even a year to be scheduled.

Marshall County Sheriff Ted Kamatchus said Hauser's murder was one of the most violent crimes he's ever investigated, and he hopes the new sentences are as strict as possible.